Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Hillary Jordan's debut novel, "Mudbound" became a bestselling book club favorite when it was published in 2008. Now, Jordan returns with "When She Woke," a futuristic retelling of "The Scarlet Letter" that Publishers Weekly calls "an instant classic for the 21st century."

Jordan's book tour will bring her to Park Road Books, 4139 Park Road, at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6. She'll read from her new novel, set in a dystopian future where convicted felons are no longer imprisoned. Instead, their skin color is altered to match the class of their crime. Jordan's main character, Hannah Payne, has been "chromed" red after being found guilty of murdering her unborn child.

"Christian fundamentalists may shun this novel," says Library Journal, "but book clubs will devour it, and savvy educators will pair it with Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter."

Dannye Romine Powell

Dannye Romine Powell

About this blog

Dannye Romine Powell has published three collections of poetry (University of Arkansas Press), and a non-fiction book, "Parting the Curtains: Interviews with Southern Writers" (John Blair). Over her years at the Observer, she's served as book review editor, feature writer, restaurant critic and local news columnist. Count on her for news of Carolinas authors and write her at dpowell@charlotteobserver.com.